A little tutorial for new schools chief

Maria Goodloe-Johnson wrote a four-page memo — what she called her "entry plan" — to describe all that she hopes to accomplish by January.

Named by the board Thursday to be Seattle's next superintendent, Goodloe-Johnson, 49, has spent her entire career in education, and she currently leads the Charleston School District in South Carolina.

She plans to arrive by July, then talk to business, community and political leaders. In the school district, she'll establish a leadership team, study the financial situation and forge relationships with unions and the press. She'll start a Friday newsletter for the seven-member board, and she gives herself a year to visit every school.

Despite the board's enthusiasm for her, Goodloe-Johnson remains a stranger to those who followed the superintendent search. The public had one opportunity to hear her, an invitation-only community meeting after which some attendees questioned her personal warmth. She has since said she was tired after a long day of interviews.

The Seattle Times asked school and community leaders what they would advise Goodloe-Johnson to do as she starts her new job.

Norm Rice

Former Seattle mayor

Last fall, Mayor Greg Nickels floated the idea that Rice should lead Seattle schools, at least for a few years. The School Board flatly rejected the informal proposal, though Rice remains one of the most popular mayors in city history.

He said the superintendent is the face of the district, much more than the elected board, and her biggest challenge will be reversing the lingering public perception that Seattle schools are struggling.

"Community relations are just as important as administering the district," he said. A key part of that is making sure the board and the superintendent agree on a basic vision, he said.

Rice, the city's only African-American mayor, also hopes Goodloe-Johnson can bring some healing to Seattle's race relations, though, he said, "race is not as important as people think it is." Instead, she should focus on making all schools great and affording equal opportunity to all students.

Although Rice's offer to lead the district wasn't accepted, he said he has no designs on the post.

"It's probably one of the toughest jobs in urban America," he said.

Lisa Bond

Communications director and past president of the Seattle Council PTSA

"Make a point of taking walking tours, dropping in at schools, attending community forums, and generally making herself visible to the school community," Bond advised. "Seattle is such a hands-on sort of city, everyone wants their opinion to be considered," Bond said. "She needs to listen to all of the different groups ... but not make any special promises to specific interest groups." Bond said that with four board members up for re-election in the fall, Goodloe-Johnson also faces the prospect of dealing with new board members who weren't involved in her hiring, may not agree with her philosophy or bond with her personally. The new superintendent already has experience navigating a divided board in South Carolina, Bond noted.

"It's a challenge, but it's not impossible," she said.

Brian Benzel

Spokane school superintendent

Goodloe-Johnson needs to strike a tricky balance between articulating her ideas and being willing to adapt her philosophy to Seattle.

"She was picked because of who she is, to bring something to the city, school district and the state," said Benzel, previously Seattle's chief operating officer.

"She should not be impaired from being who she is. But it does create strength when you are clear about what you believe in, and are also open to examining how you accomplish them."

Benzel said Goodloe-Johnson can find support among business leaders and school principals, and she should also cultivate legislators.

She could avoid creating "immediate challenges or problems" by listening to parents, staff and community groups before imposing her vision, he said. And Seattle should cut her some slack in a "huge transition" from Charleston, he said.

"It will be important for the city to embrace her, and be a bit forgiving, especially in the early stages," he said.

Trish Dziko

A Seattle schools parent who runs an after-school technology program for minority students

Dziko, co-chair of a committee appointed by outgoing Superintendent Raj Manhas to recommend financial and academic changes for Seattle schools, had lots of advice, from being transparent to putting kids first.

She also had one idea she thought would be the most controversial: "Even though she's here to serve all kids, it's important as an African-American woman that she makes a tight connection with the African-American community. We've been working on this and working on this, and there doesn't seem to be any connection between the district and the community."

Dziko said she hopes Goodloe-Johnson will cut through all the Seattle talk.

"She's bringing an East Coast style to Seattle, which I actually love. That style doesn't always work out here ... but it gets things done. We do a lot of talking, we do a lot of planning, but we don't do a lot of execution and implementation. How many community conversations have we had in the last 10 years? A lot. What's the outcome of those? More community conversations. It's time to stop talking and start doing."

Blair Butterworth

Longtime political consultant and board member of the League of Education Voters

Goodloe-Johnson should convene a "kitchen cabinet" to give her informal political advice, especially when it comes to navigating questions of race, he said.

Her reception in Seattle would be smoother if she refrained from focusing on institutional racism as the reason why African-American students generally receive lower grades on standardized tests than other racial groups. Eradicating institutional racism, however, is part of the school district's strategic plan, and a top priority of several School Board members.

Butterworth also noted a remark Goodloe-Johnson made in her community forum April 6, in which she said she didn't consider herself a cheerleader for education.

"There's a certain amount of cheerleading to be done. That may not be her strength, but we should expect someone who makes a quarter-million dollars a year that they have a range of skills. She's going to have to step it up.

"I don't think she can expect a long honeymoon," he said.

John Boyd

Chief Sealth High School principal

Boyd is optimistic that Goodloe-Johnson and Chief Academic Officer Carla Santorno can "work together to help us continue to help kids. That's the bottom line for me."

"I think there's an awful lot of good things going on in Seattle, and I hope she celebrates those things. The negative tends to get printed, the negative tends to get aired," Boyd said. "I really appreciated what [former Superintendent] John Stanford did when I was a teacher in the district. He was a great cheerleader for us all, yet he held us accountable and helped us reach greater heights and pushed us.

"That's my greatest hope: that she can come in and motivate us all to do better for our students."

Seattle Times staff reporters Alex Fryer, Jonathan Martin, Nick Perry and Linda Shaw contributed to this story.